Abstract
This article considers the emergence of the postmodern reflexive consumer through an archival case study of one particularly influential lifestyle magazine, the Whole Earth Catalog. This publication is read in the context of the cultural and lifestyle innovations of the ‘new cultural intermediaries’ (Bourdieu, Featherstone) of the 1970s, expressed in a new print media of lifestyle advice. In this print culture, consumers were taught to cultivate a reflexive awareness of their lifestyles through an enhanced sensitivity to the deeper meanings of market messages and consumer choices. On the basis of the advice of non-traditional lifestyle intellectuals, market choices acquired a sense of ‘deep play’ (Geertz) in which the well-being of the self and the planet emerged as the specific stake of lifestyle choices. Combining archival research with theoretical and historical analysis, the findings of this study offer an alternative to postmodern studies of the new consumer culture, which focus on the depthlessnessof consumption as a form of ‘pastiche’ (Jameson).
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
